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Wife Targeted for Deadly Puffer-Fish Poison

CHICAGO (AP) __ A 38-year-old suburban Chicago man pleaded guilty on Tuesday to obtaining a deadly puffer-fish poison to deploy as a weapon, which federal authorities had once accused him of wanting to use to kill his wife.

Edward F. Bachner IV pleaded guilty in a Rockford federal court to knowingly possessing the toxin for use as a weapon, wire fraud and filing a false tax claim. He faces a maximum sentence of life in prison, though he’s likely to receive a lesser term as a result of his plea deal.

After his 2008 arrest, prosecutors alleged that the Lake in the Hills man sought to kill his wife using the toxin, then collect on a $20 million insurance policy. Those allegations are not a part of the charges he pleaded guilty to on Tuesday.

Bachner was arrested three years ago after he picked up a package containing the toxins, which are found naturally in puffer fish and can be deadly when ingested. As little as four milligrams can kill a human and Bachner had ordered 98 milligrams, court documents allege.

Later, agents also found syringes, needles and a book on how to poison people when they searched his home in Lake in the Hills, prosecutors have said. At the time, a defense attorney said the book was a reference work for would-be crime novelists. Bachner originally was charged with lying to get the toxin by claiming it was for scientific research.